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Hearst staff cuts worry Guild members

Every day brings more bad news from newspapers around the country, and the Hearst Corp. is no exception. The company has now announced it could fold theSan Francisco Chronicle after already saying it would fold theSeattle Post-Intelligencerif a buyer can’t be found. (No one expects that to happen.)

Another Hearst paper, the Houston Chronicle, has said it would cut “more than 10 percent” of staff. And every day the revenue picture worsens.

We do not expect the Times Union to be exempt from these forces. We return to the bargaining table at 10 a.m. Thursday and are preparing a package that will include some concessions. No one would want to be bargaining a contract in this economy, but then again our Newspaper Guild local was born in the darkest days of the depression 75 years ago next month.

Some might argue unions are not needed any more, especially as companies fight to stave off fiscal disaster. We believe our long and proud history shows that unions like ours are needed now more than ever to represent our employees as they face some of the darkest days most of us have ever seen.